Come Over Here and Help Us!

Then they went from town to town, instructing the believers to follow the decisions made by the apostles and elders in Jerusalem. So the churches were strengthened in their faith and grew larger every day. Next, Paul and Silas traveled through the area of Phrygia and Galatia, because the Holy Spirit had prevented them from preaching the word in the province of Asia at that time. Then coming to the borders of Mysia, they headed north for the province of Bithynia, but again the Spirit of Jesus did not allow them to go there. So instead, they went on through Mysia to the seaport of Troas. That night Paul had a vision: A man from Macedonia in northern Greece was standing there, pleading with him, “Come over to Macedonia and help us!” So we decided to leave for Macedonia at once, having concluded that God was calling us to preach the Good News there. - Acts 16:4-10

“Come over to Macedonia and help us!” What a powerful and yet oft neglected verse of the New Testament. 

In North America the church of Jesus Christ has taken a real hit. Some of the loss is self-inflicted - other things beyond our control have also stymied us over the past few decades. It’s true and indisputable - the “church” has been losing “members” for decades now. The decline is evident - both numerically and, unfortunately, spiritually.

Yet, one wonders if we should be viewing this from a different perspective.

In other words, is this the opportunity we have been praying for? To quote a teacher from long ago: are “the fields white with harvest?”

We believe they are.

Which is why, after years of praying and wondering, Missy and I are (as an AARP-aged couple no less) answering the call to plant a church. We have heard the call come from “Macedonia:” “Come over here and help us!”

God has spoken clearly to us. His Holy Spirit has been directing and leading us all along the way. We have seen a great need and have a desire to fill it. Answering our “Macedonian call,” Missy and I are moving to Alabama to plant a church on the Eastern Side of Mobile Bay.

And God has already been opening doors for us to walk through.

We would like to take some time to explain to you what God is calling us to do…

First off, this will not be a traditional church plant as you might be thinking. We are looking to focus on only three things:
    Fellowship (lots and lots of time together!)
    Discipleship (spending lots of time doing in depth Bible study and the other spiritual disciplines)
    Service (our love for God should reveal itself in our love for others. Period)

Secondly, we will not be seeking to build a church numerically. We will not be focused on numbers. That is the way of the world. We will not care about numbers. We will care about people.

Also, we will not have a budget. (We know, some of your heads are spinning right now.)There will be no overhead for us. Each week we will take whatever funds are given, and collectively as a group agree to whom/what we will be sending our gifts to. Then we will turn around and immediately be a blessing to someone. 

Furthermore, we will not worry one second about trying something new out...you know, doing something different. We will not be caged by tradition or a "This is the way we have always done it!" mentality. Rather, we will be free to place new wine into new wineskins.

Now. What will be our aim?

We will focus on growing people. We will keep our primary concern on seeing people mature in Christ and growing closer to God. We will invest our time in them - via Bible studies, small group ministries, prayer groups, and service groups.

We will train people to be leaders. If there is a shortage of anything in Christ’s church it is leadership. But, to be a leader of others you must first be a follower of Jesus. Therefore, one of our aims will be to teach others to become leaders.

We will train others to be leaders so they may then go out and serve. We do not want people to just gather - we want to gather so then we will “go.” We desire to take to others what has been given to us.

We will serve together. That’s one thing that we cannot wait to do - Missy and I understood and accepted as co-pastors. Both of us. Together. A team. And, our fellowship will recognize it as well.

And all the while, we will do all things in joy. Fellowship, koinonia, will be a hallmark of who we are and what we do. Think of it this way: lots of food, lots of laughter, lots of sharing, lots of playing games, lots of just hanging out at the local high school activities...fun times!

Some people call what we are going to do “marketplace ministry.” That’s not a bad way of looking at it. We will both be working normal jobs. We will not look to ask people to come to us…we will be going to them. Kind of like Jesus and the disciples in the New Testament.

And maybe that last sentence explains best what God has laid upon our hearts. We want to do what we read and see in the New Testament. We want to be like Jesus. As Paul writes, “Follow me as I follow Christ.” May that be said of us all.

Please be in prayer for us. Please ask God to continue to lead us. Please ask God to anoint us with his Holy Spirit. Please seek for God’s favor to be upon us as we reach out to those he places in our path. May God use us all for his glory…

Spiritual Health without Pills!

 

Devote yourselves to prayer with an alert mind and a thankful heart. Pray for us, too, that God will give us many opportunities to speak about his mysterious plan concerning Christ. That is why I am here in chains. Pray that I will proclaim this message as clearly as I should…Tychicus will give you a full report about how I am getting along. He is a beloved brother and faithful helper who serves with me in the Lord’s work. I have sent him to you for this very purpose—to let you know how we are doing and to encourage you. I am also sending Onesimus, a faithful and beloved brother, one of your own people. He and Tychicus will tell you everything that’s happening here.

Aristarchus, who is in prison with me, sends you his greetings, and so does Mark, Barnabas’s cousin. As you were instructed before, make Mark welcome if he comes your way. Jesus (the one we call Justus) also sends his greetings. These are the only Jewish believers among my co-workers; they are working with me here for the Kingdom of God. And what a comfort they have been!

Epaphras, a member of your own fellowship and a servant of Christ Jesus, sends you his greetings. He always prays earnestly for you, asking God to make you strong and perfect, fully confident that you are following the whole will of God. I can assure you that he prays hard for you and also for the believers in Laodicea and Hierapolis.

Luke, the beloved doctor, sends his greetings, and so does Demas. Please give my greetings to our brothers and sisters at Laodicea, and to Nympha and the church that meets in her house - Colossians 4:2-4; 7- 15 (NLT)

As we get older physically it should be expected that we grow spiritually. And while physical health may decrease as our birthdays increase, our spiritual health should continually increase. Sure, we may eat more oatmeal and fiber to offset certain bodily issues or rub a little more Tiger Balm on our joints and muscles…but the most vital concern of getting older must be our spiritual well being.

We may get that 55+ discount but the real issue is this: are we maturing in the faith?

In his letter to the church at Colossae Paul lists several names. People who are important to Paul, important to Christ, important to his kingdom. Why are they important? They are mature.

And if we are not growing or maturing? We are contributing to the deteriorating health of his church. That’s something we believe none of us want to be guilty of.

Therefore, what does it take to grow spiritually? Bible.org has a seven step suggestion we would like to share with you: What Does It Take To Grow? | Bible.org
  

    1. In order to grow we need to eat—The Bible
    2. In order to grow we need to breathe—Prayer
    3. In order to grow we need good spiritual hygiene—Confession
    4. In order to grow we need a caring family—Fellowship
    5. In order to grow we need regular exercise—Service
    6. In order to grow we need protection—Holiness
    7. In order to grow we need to give—Stewardship

That is a list we all should place somewhere in order for us to see it daily. No matter our age we all need to be growing in our faith…without having to add another pill to our pillbox…

The author of Hebrews understood this. He writes in chapter 6: So let us stop going over the basic teachings about Christ again and again. Let us go on instead and become mature in our understanding. Surely we don’t need to start again with the fundamental importance of repenting from evil deeds and placing our faith in God. You don’t need further instruction about baptisms, the laying on of hands, the resurrection of the dead, and eternal judgment. And so, God willing, we will move forward to further understanding (Hebrews 6:1-3).

Did you notice the wording? “Let us go on…become mature…we will move forward…”

None of that just happens. It isn’t automatic. In other words, you don’t just believe on Christ Jesus and, “BOOM!” you’re a spiritual giant. It takes time and effort. It takes making mistakes, confession and going at it again. As Peter writes, But grow in the grace and knowledge of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. To him be glory both now and forever! Amen. (2 Peter 3:18).

The English poet, Alexander Pope, wrote, “As the twig is bent, so grows the tree.” When new trees are planted it’s best to put stakes into the ground beside the tree. The stakes are there for a purpose—to train the tree to grow straight and tall.

Those stakes work great when they are put in place when the tree is first planted. That said, if crooked growth has been allowed to develop for several years, stakes will not be effective.

This is why a young Christian should be modeled and taught the spiritual disciplines. We do great harm to new Christians when we fail to share with them the need for Bible reading, prayer, confession, fellowship, service, holiness and stewardship. If they don’t do these things they are setting themselves up for failure, spiritual immaturity and grief.

If however, we set the stakes up from the beginning, those “trees” will go straight and strong.

After all, the very first Psalm reminds us: Blessed is the one who does not walk in step with the wicked or stand in the way that sinners take  or sit in the company of mockers, but whose delight is in the law of the Lord,  and who meditates on his law day and night. That person is like a tree planted by streams of water, which yields its fruit in season and whose leaf does not wither—whatever they do prospers.